Families of Hamas Hostages Sue Mahmoud Khalil, Student Groups for Supporting Terrorism

Families of hostages taken by Hamas during the October 7, 2023, attack have filed a lawsuit in Manhattan federal court against Mahmoud Khalil, a detained Columbia University protest leader, and several student organizations. The lawsuit accuses the defendants of functioning as Hamas's 'propaganda arm' in the U.S. and alleges that their anti-Israel protests contributed to the spread of Hamas's hateful rhetoric and intimidation of Jewish students. Plaintiffs include relatives of those still held captive in Gaza, as well as former hostages and IDF soldiers. The suit claims that the defendants engaged in unlawful activities that damaged public property and physically assaulted university employees. It also suggests that some groups had prior knowledge of the attacks and timed their communications to coincide with the violence. The defendants have not yet commented on the lawsuit.